Samizdat B92 publishes Serbian translation of Kadare's book

Samizdat B92 publishes Serbian translation of Kadare's book

In this time span, a young man who entered literature with big dreams had faced with numerous challenges, censorship, bans, but managed despite all of that, thanks to his talent and pragmatism, to create unique and coherent opus.

This book contains several stories that were written for the first time, although they were written long time ago, but some of them that were already published was not republished in their original versions, given that they were censored in earlier editions. Every story and novella in this book has its own story on the creation and difficulties regarding (non)publishing of Kadare's first literary work entitled "An unknown country", which he describes as a milestone that marks kilometers of literary distance covered since then, via other short stories, some of which had become chapters of a novel.

Kadare's early works always carry certain privileged connection with him. Not because they are firstborn in the long series of books, but because returning to them meant turning to the intimate nostalgia towards the sparks that made them, those primeval traces of writing and its secret life in the serenity of dark archives, where after so many years, stunning curiosity for reunion is present, as if when you meet with longtime lost first loves.

In this collection, time is depicted as dialectics of similarities and differences, still something unique prevailing in this literature. Therefore, collection of short stories entitled Discussing diamonds on December afternoon resembles selection of miniatures of Kadare's great literary opus that describes the spirit of the whole opus.

Ismail Kadare is a writer that creates the map of a whole culture, history, passion, folklore, politics and its catastrophies. He is universal writer
with a narrative tradition that has its origin in Homer.

- John Carey

In as much Albania is different compared to Sweden or France, still, it gave birth to a genius. Kadare is famous worldwide; if you present Kadare with an award, it does not mean that you praised him but yourself.

- Alen Boske, from the letter addressed to the Commission for the Noble Prize in Literature

"Discussing Diamonds on December Afternoon" has been published in Serbian - translated from Albanian by Shkelzen Maliqi - by Samizdat B92.